"One Weird Sister"
It simply hadn't occurred to him. It should have, but it hadn't. Not until the morning he rolled out of bed, groggily made his way towards the bathroom, and stepped directly onto her hairbrush. Grumbling under his breath, he stooped down to pick it up. Then, as he stumbled into the bathroom, he casually tossed the brush onto the counter before reaching for the toothpaste. And as he did, the fluorescent bathroom light shone off a few strands of hair caught in the brush's bristles. Don paused. He leaned forward, squinting at the hair.
It couldn't be. But it was.
Grabbing the brush, he exploded out of the bathroom, stalked over to the bed, and immediately shook Renet awake. She blinked up at him with sleepy eyes then slowly smiled. "Hey, Don. 'Morning."
He dropped the hairbrush onto the pillow next to her head. Looking confused, she briefly glanced over at it then turned her gaze back to him. Donatello crossed his arms over his plastron. She blinked some more and yawned.
"Uh, Donny? I know I don't have an off-the-charts I.Q. like you do but … I don't get why you're so upset. It's just a hairbrush, sweetie."
"Your hair," he replied shortly. "It's turning gray."
At that, Renet winced. "Oh."
"That's it? 'Oh'?" Don threw up his hands. "You are a time mistress. You're supposed to be immortal. Your hair—" For emphasis, he jabbed a finger in the general direction of the brush. "—is not supposed to turn gray!"
She stared at him in silence for several long moments before, biting her lip, she ventured, "You haven't had your coffee yet, have you?"
"This is not a joke, Renet. I mean, don't you even want to know why your hair is—"
"Donny, I already know why!" Somehow she managed to sound both exasperated and amused.
He stood silent for a few moments, digesting this new piece of information. "Oh," he finally muttered. He felt his face warm in uncomfortable embarrassment. "Well, uh … why, then?"
Rolling out of bed, she gave him a pat on the shoulder before drifting towards the kitchen. "Because I'm not immortal anymore. Like, duh." Her laughter floated back to him, as he followed her out to the kitchen. "You were a mortal, and I wasn't. And it's not as though you could, y'know, just become immortal."
Silently Don watched as she poured water into the coffee-maker and turned it on. Then she continued bustling around the small kitchen, preparing toast, getting eggs, fetching cups, with a completely calm and relaxed air. It was maddening. Absolutely maddening. He realized, not for the first time, that no matter how long he lived with this strange woman, no matter how much he loved her—she would never, ever run out of ways to surprise him.
"So you gave up immortality," he clarified aloud, not quite willing to believe it, "for me."
Turning around, she smiled and rolled her eyes at him. "Honestly, Don! It sounds so serious and dramatic and stuff when you say it like that."
Donatello reached out and pulled her close against his chest. Though he knew it should be him comforting her, he didn't protest when her arms reached around his neck or when her lips, soft and familiar, began murmuring soothing words in his ear. He just buried his face against Renet's hair and held on even tighter.
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Author's Note: I'm really concerned that I'm coming far too close to canon Sueing Renet (if I haven't done so already). So for those of you following this drabble series, please feel free to be merciless. Criticism is most helpful and appreciated.
